Five Months
by Scriptress
Summary: For the past five months, May has only communicated with Drew through the use of written letters. During her last day in Slateport City, she is forced to make a decision that could change her life forever. Contestshipping. Oneshot.


**My first update in forever. Enjoy!**

* * *

May emerged from the bathroom with an armful of soaps and shampoos, preparing to cram the remaining shower essentials into her backpack. After zipping it closed, she sat on the bed of her room at the Poke Center and sighed.

That was the last of it. All of her things were officially packed, and she was ready to embark on the rest of her journey later that afternoon.

She pulled her ticket out of her pocket and reminded herself that she was to board the ship at 3:30. May set her alarm to remind her to make her way to the docks at 3. She sighed softly and placed the ticket back in her purse, taking a long look at her empty rented room.

It was so quiet without Drew.

May took out her phone and checked the screen, although she knew there would be no missed messages from him. That wasn't how they communicated. She most definitely had his number, and he most definitely had hers, but they never called. Instead, they wrote letters to each other.

Each letter would begin with the name of the recipient, followed by the current location of the recipient. At the end of the message, the writer would always specify their next destination beneath their name. If Drew wrote Lilycove City under his name at the end of the letter, May knew to send the reply to the Poke Center in Lilycove. This way, the letters would have arrived at the Poke Center of the next destination before the intended recipient. They also served as motivation to continue along their respective journeys.

However, May did not have a letter waiting for her upon her arrival to Slateport City. She'd stayed multiple days in hopes of receiving a letter, so that she could reply and give Drew her next destination. But she couldn't afford to waste any more time.

She realized how terribly inefficient this system was, given that numerous days would go by before she even got a response. In this case, it had been a week and a half.

Still, the act of writing letters seemed so intimate to May that she happily agreed to the form of communication. It was so personal that it felt like home. Drew even managed to aggravate her with only pen and paper.

She unzipped the main compartment of her backpack and pulled out a notebook filled with every letter Drew had sent her since the exchange began. She carefully unfolded the most recent letter.

 _May Maple  
_ _Mauville City_

 _?_

 _Drew Hayden  
_ _Verdanturf Town_

This letter in particular was the most aggravating thing she could imagine. By the time she received it in Mauville City, she, of course, could not remember what she could have possibly written that would elicit a question mark. He realized that, knew that his vague question would anger her, and sent it anyway.

To lighten her mood, she flipped the pages of the notebook to one of the oldest letters. Her favorite. She'd opened it so many times that the page was worn along its folded creases.

 _May Maple  
_ _Fortree City_

 _Today I automatically bought cookie dough ice cream because I know it's your favorite.  
_ _Then I realized you wouldn't be there when I got back from the store.  
_ _Still getting used to this, I guess._

 _Drew Hayden  
_ _Lilycove City_

May smiled warmly, tears filling her eyes as her heart ached. This was written after they'd first gone separate ways and were adjusting to living without each other.

She loved how Drew remembered her favorite ice cream flavor, though she rarely mentioned it, and bought it just to surprise her with it. She loved how he was having just as much trouble as she was with being on her own.

It had been five months since she'd seen him last. For her, that was much too long.

May stood up and tugged at the end of her sundress to straighten it, before grabbing her room key and shutting the door behind her. She speculated that fresh air would be an instant remedy for the emotions running rampant in her mind.

"Miss Maple?" a voice asked her.

She paused and turned to the source of her name, her dress fluttering at the sudden movement.

"Nurse Joy?" May questioned, as she approached the woman at the desk.

Nurse Joy smiled. "You're May Maple, right?"

May beamed proudly. "The one and only!"

"Oh, perfect!" Nurse Joy said, rummaging for something hidden behind her desk. "Something came in the mail for you today."

May's heart skipped a beat.

Before she could reply, Nurse Joy presented to her a letter with the stamp of a rose.

May took the letter in her hands and ran her slender fingers across the name scribbled on the back: _Drew Hayden_

"Oh my goodness," Nurse Joy exclaimed. "I can't believe this is actually happening."

May paused and looked from the letter to the nurse's face. "I'm sorry?"

Nurse Joy blushed and tried to explain herself. "Oh, my sisters and I absolutely adore the letters that go back and forth between you two."

May blushed scarlet. "Nurse Joy! You've been reading my letters?"

The nurse waved her hands in front of her dismissively. "No, of course not! We just swap stories from time to time. My favorite was when he sent you balloons for your birthday in… which town was it, dear?"

May's blush deepened, embarrassed that she remembered which one exactly. "Mossdeep City."

Nurse Joy giggled. "Oh, of course! Yes, _that_ Nurse Joy had quite the story to tell the rest of us."

May shifted her stance uncomfortably and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Nurse Joy, please—"

She giggled again. "I'm sorry! It's just that your relationship—"

"We don't have— We're not—"

"Is very cute. I wonder what it is this time?"

May cautiously opened the letter with an eager Nurse Joy as her audience.

 _May Maple  
_ _Slateport City_

 _12 Oceanview Avenue. 12:30pm._

She wrinkled her brow and mumbled, "It's an address."

Nurse Joy mimicked her expression. "Is that all?"

May nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving the page.

Then she froze, her breath caught in her throat.

 _Drew Hayden  
_ _Slateport City_

"He's in Slateport," May whispered. She looked up at Nurse Joy in shock. "He's here. He's in the city."

The nurse gasped quietly, her hand covering her mouth. "Oh my goodness!"

May's eyes welled with tears as she reread the last two lines of her letter. She ignored Nurse Joy's ramblings about the romance of it all, when she was hit with a sudden realization.

He was waiting for her somewhere. Right now.

"What time is it?" May asked, cutting off Nurse Joy.

Nurse Joy looked up to check the clock on the wall behind the brunette. "About… 12:34."

May's hand flew to her forehead in panic. "Oh my god, I'm not ready." She started pacing the floor, then paused to examine her outfit. "I look so stupid. Drew doesn't even know I _have_ a sundress."

"Don't be ridiculous," the nurse interjected. "You're positively beautiful."

May looked up at her with worry-filled eyes. "Are you sure?"

She smiled at the nervous girl. "Absolutely."

May sighed and reread the letter. "I'm already late." She placed it on the desk and spun it so Nurse Joy could read it. "I don't even know where this is."

Nurse Joy paused to read and remember the address. She looked up and seemed to scan the streets outside through the walls of the Poke Center.

"Oh, that's not too far," she decided. She used her hands to emphasize her directions. "Turn right as soon as you leave the Center and take the first left! It should be at the end of the block."

May clutched her purse and started to make her way towards the exit. "Thanks, Nurse Joy!"

"You're welcome!" she called after her.

May's heart pounded harder with every step she took. It took every ounce of her willpower to keep herself from running. Five months. That's how long it had been. Had he gotten a haircut? Did he still hate peanut butter? She felt as if she had to relearn everything she knew about him.

She could barely register the scent of the sea air, which she would have normally adored. She ran her fingers through her hair as she approached the street at which she was to make a left turn.

Her mind ripped through every memory she had of quiet nights and lonely thunderstorms. She could finally admit to herself that she'd forgotten the exact shade of green his eyes were, now that she was going to be vividly reminded.

She crossed the street, her sundress flowing behind her as her pace matched her heartbeat. She could already see the end of the block, and was frantically searching for a splash of green, to no avail.

She quickened her step and held her breath. She could see her destination. She could see umbrellas. Black tables and black chairs.

And green. Soft green.

He must have heard frantic footsteps, because he suddenly looked up.

May felt her heart stumble in her chest, as she saw Drew staring at her from an outdoor cafe.

He stood up to greet her, although she was still too far away.

She increased her pace slightly, and let a few tears roll down her cheeks.

Her mind was filled with him. Every moment he was there. Every moment he wasn't.

Their eyes did not disconnect as she dodged the outdoor furniture and collided with him, her face pressed against his chest.

She closed her eyes and exhaled sharply, burying her face in his neck as she committed every aspect of what she was feeling to memory.

His scent of mint that she would only receive remnants of through his letters.

The feel of his left hand as it moved from her waist to her upper back in an effort to pull her closer.

The way he managed to fill every empty space of her being with his existence.

"Five months," he whispered into her hair.

"Yeah," she whispered back.

May could feel the world around her slip away as she skimmed the side of his neck with the tip of her nose.

She felt him sigh against her skin as the buildings disappeared. His fingers tightened around the fabric of her dress.

She was entirely unable to stop herself from skimming her nose along his jawline and he lifted his head to accommodate her movement.

It was as though pure adrenaline was pumping through her veins. She was lightning. She was fire.

With her eyes still closed, she felt his energy through his fingertips as his hand touched the side of her face. One of her hands was suddenly in his hair, alight with the feeling of his silky strands against her fingers.

He touched his forehead against hers and she felt his breath against her lips.

She felt as though she was dangling over a void, waiting for the fall. Ready to embrace utter vulnerability.

She tilted her head slightly and his immediate reaction was to further shorten the distance between them by brushing his nose against hers.

She almost lost her balance and toppled over the edge, when a voice came piercing through the darkness.

"May?!"

Her return to reality was abrupt. Buildings erupting. Waves crashing. The ground rattling beneath her feet.

May opened her eyes to see that Drew had opened his as well, although their proximity made it difficult for her to focus on anything in particular. They were frozen for a second before the same voice broke through to her consciousness.

"Is that May Maple?"

Much to her chagrin, she untangled herself from Drew and silently cursed this person, though she turned around with a smile. That would have been their first kiss. That would have been the best kiss she'd ever experienced. She could already feel the energy from the moment draining from her body.

"Oh, am I interrupting something?" the boy asked.

He looked to be a couple of years younger than them, and he was holding out a magazine for May to sign.

Drew hummed a low affirmative, while May politely waved off the question.

"No, no, don't worry about it," she reassured her fan.

He beamed. "Okay! I can't believe you're here! I love your work!"

May could feel Drew's tension from where he stood behind her, but chose to ignore it.

"Thank you!" she said, reaching for a pen in her purse. "Would you like for me to sign this for you?"

He nodded and shoved the magazine a bit further in her direction. She signed it quickly, and smiled at him again.

"There you go!" she stated.

The boy looked at her signature with awe before thanking her sincerely. He looked behind her at Drew, and his smile faltered slightly.

"Well, I'd better get going," he said, closing the magazine. "Enjoy your lunch!"

May turned around to look at Drew, who was watching the boy leave.

"What did you do?" May asked him.

He shrugged and shook his head in reply.

There was a brief moment of silence, and he glanced at her lips, but it was evident that the moment was gone.

"It's been a while," Drew said as he turned to pull out a chair for her.

She sat as he pushed it towards the table. "Yeah."

He sat at his side of the table and shook his head. "You know, I purposefully picked a place near the Poke Center so you'd be here on time." He checked his watch. "But you're still ten minutes late."

She blushed and glared at him. "I got your letter _after_ 12:30. I got here as fast as I could!"

He lifted an eyebrow. "You left your room after 12:30?"

"Yeah I was—" she averted her eyes before looking back up at him. "I was packing."

She shouldn't have done that. She shouldn't have looked away. She could tell Drew was calculating her reaction. Every hint of arrogance had disappeared instantly.

Seconds ticked by before he spoke.

"Where are you going?" he asked with complete sincerity. She thought she detected a hint of worry.

"Coffee?" The waitress asked.

Drew's eyes leapt from May's face to their server for a split second. "Yes, thanks."

May watched as the woman poured the black liquid into a white coffee cup, and allowed her eyes to follow the cup on its path to Drew's lips. She was relieved to find that he still liked his coffee black.

His light grey V-neck paired with the whiteness of the coffee cup accentuated his eyes in a way May found to be completely captivating. She was suddenly imagining a messy-haired Drew drinking coffee across from her at breakfast every morning.

He lowered his coffee cup, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Two creams, two sugars," he said.

"What?" May said aloud, before realizing they were instructions for the waitress.

May glanced down at the coffee cup before her in time to see the woman leaving the sweeteners on the brim of the saucer.

"I'm so sorry," May apologized. She looked at Drew to see that he was smiling into his cup of coffee.

"It's quite alright," the waitress said with a smile before disappearing to wait other tables.

"God, Maple," Drew said once she was out of earshot. He lifted his coffee cup to his lips. "Keep it in your pants."

May scoffed, pouring the cream into her own coffee. "What are you talking about?"

"You were totally undressing me with your eyes in front of that nice waitress."

May paused, spoon in hand, to stare at Drew in disbelief. "No, I wasn't."

He smirked. "The look you had on your face was telling me otherwise."

She stirred the sugar into her coffee and cursed her cheeks for burning at the accusation. "My thoughts were very G-rated, thank you very much."

"Would you mind telling me what you were thinking about, then?"

May stared at the table as she imagined the imminent embarrassment that would accompany her confession.

She met Drew's eyes again. "Not going to happen."

He set down his coffee cup and leaned a bit forward, speaking in a hushed tone. "Well, would you mind telling me where you're going?"

She bit her lip and set down her spoon. She kept eye contact with him, and noticed that the mocking glint in his eye was no longer there. He genuinely cared. Maybe he was worried. He knew that there was something different in the way she admitted her departure.

May exhaled slowly and braced herself for what was to come.

"I'm going to Sinnoh," she said slowly.

Drew absorbed that information at an excruciatingly slow pace. His eyes never dropped from hers, and his expression did not change. May knew that her words hurt him a little bit.

He leaned back into his chair slightly, his hand running through his hair. He looked up at nothing in particular, sorting through the thoughts running wild in his mind. He exhaled, as if remembering to breathe, and looked down at his coffee.

His eyes met hers once again, clouded with something she couldn't quite put her finger on. "Wow."

"Yeah."

He went silent again and watched his index finger run along the handle of his coffee cup.

May could hear the sounds of bikes and bustling people as she waited for him to speak. She heard the sounds of clinking glasses and waves crashing against the docks.

" _That's_ why you're in Slateport," he mumbled without looking at her. "I was wondering why you were headed this way. There's nothing here for you."

"Exactly," May explained softly.

The way he looked up at her, his eyes filled with numerous questions, was enough to make her want to complete what they had started a couple of minutes before.

The waitress from before was suddenly at their table. "Can I get anything else for you, today?"

Drew didn't respond.

"No, thank you," May said to her, smiling brightly. "Just the coffees for today."

The waitress smiled at May's politeness. "Let me know if you need anything."

May watched her go in order to further delay this conversation with Drew. She'd never brought up the subject before because she wasn't entirely sure if she would go through with it. Now she'd made up her mind.

She sighed and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I don't think there's anything more that Hoenn can offer me."

She watched as Drew clenched his jaw and processed her words. She bit her lip. That action alone was so attractive to her that it distracted her briefly from the seriousness of their conversation. Maybe the electricity from their almost kiss was still lingering in her veins.

His expression suddenly softened as he came to accept her decision. "Alright. I get it."

Relief flooded through her, only to be cut short by his next words.

"But there's still more for me to do here."

She looked at her coffee cup and cleared her throat, attempting to keep her tears at bay. She knew he wouldn't be accompanying her, but the solidification of that fact hurt more than she had imagined.

"When are you leaving?" he asked her.

"3:30," she mumbled immediately, refusing to meet his eyes.

She could tell he was taken aback without looking at him.

"Today?" he asked incredulously.

She nodded and finally focused on his face rather than the table.

He brought his hand to his forehead in an attempt to cope with the second blow. His fingers moved to pinch the bridge of his nose as his eyebrows furrowed.

"May," he said, exasperated.

"I know."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't sure," May said weakly. The table suddenly seemed like an obstacle between them. She wanted nothing more than to hold him close to her. "I wasn't sure if I wanted to."

He sighed and looked into her eyes, clenching his jaw.

"But I know that I need to," she continued. "For me."

Drew's eyes searched hers and she could see his confusion dissipate.

He chuckled lightly. "It's a good thing I caught you before you left."

She smiled, feeling the weight of the conversation lift from the air. "Yeah. Perfect timing as always."

Drew laughed lightly, understanding the inside joke.

May had been referring to a time when she'd been drafting contest appeals, and frustratedly crumpled up the paper she'd been working on. She had attempted to throw it into the waste basket, but ended up hitting Drew in the face with it when he'd opened her door to check on her. The ball bounced off of his nose, effectively cutting him off in the middle of saying her name. There was a brief silence as she covered her mouth with both hands and he stared at the paper attacker which lay on the floor. Perfect timing, he'd said, before the two cracked up laughing.

"Tell me about Sinnoh," Drew said, bringing her back to the present.

"Well…" May began playfully. She watched Drew smile in response as he leaned forward to listen to her ramble. "I am really excited to go to Jubilife City."

His smile widened, and he glanced at her lips. "Really."

May nodded. "And Hearthome."

She watched his eyes as they scanned her face. His gaze was soft, reminiscent.

"I've heard good things about Hearthome," he encouraged.

"But I'm not going to Floaroma Town."

Drew's eyes narrowed slightly. "Why not?"

"Well," May started, her voice low. "I think that it would be very Drew there. With all the roses. And I think it would make me want to turn around and come right back to Hoenn."

He suddenly looked as if he were enduring an internal struggle. His eyes trailed down from her eyes to her lips, and the table was once again an obstacle in between them.

The air around her suddenly felt unbearably warm.

"My coffee's cold," she said without tasting her coffee as she stared at his clenched jaw.

"Mine too," he mumbled in response.

"Wanna get out of here?"

"Yeah."

Drew pulled out his wallet and left a large enough bill on the table to cover the price of the coffees as well as leave a decent tip for the waitress.

The two left the cafe and walked in the direction of the ocean, where they could see voyages beginning and ending.

May attempted to quell the heat in her cheeks, but the distance between she and Drew as they walked was almost nonexistent. She brushed her pinky against his, and he responded by connecting their littlest fingers. Together, they pinky-promised their way down Oceanview Avenue.

She could feel the heat radiating off of his skin, their combined energy compiling.

Once at the docks, May could definitely smell the salt in the sea air. Their shoes clicked against the boardwalk as they approached the pier.

Drew released her pinky and instead leaned against the railing. She stood next to him, her hair and sundress fluttering in the breeze.

They had about an hour together before parting ways yet again.

"Are you nervous?" Drew asked her, staring out into the sea.

"Very."

He lifted an arm off the railing and reached down to grab May's hand.

"You can call me if you need to," he said.

May stared at him in disbelief. They never called each other. It was an unspoken rule between them. It also made their reunions that much more meaningful.

"Only in emergencies," May said. She wanted to keep their letter system going strong.

Drew smirked. "Okay, only in emergencies."

"But I'll also call you if I'm really sad."

"Okay."

"Can I call you at two in the morning?"

"Yep."

"I'm also going to call you when I can't remember the name of a song because I can't really write the hums down in a letter."

Drew laughed. "Okay."

There was a brief silence before he laughed again.

"Is that a normal problem for you?" he asked her.

"I can never remember the names of any songs!" she admitted, annoyed at herself. Drew laughed again beside her. That sound was so beautiful to her. "And I can never remember any of the lyrics. And I always think, 'Drew would know exactly what song this is, but I can't exactly ask him.' That's the one flaw in this whole letter thing."

"Not knowing the titles of songs?"

"Not knowing the titles of songs, yes."

They watched as the wingulls flew overhead.

"So those are the three exceptions to the letters," Drew clarified.

"Yes. In emergencies. When I'm scared. And when I can't remember the song that goes—"

May started humming a tune and Drew placed it immediately.

"Wow," May said. "Suddenly life is so much easier."

He squeezed her hand, causing her heart to flutter.

The two watched as people boarded ships and left their friends and family behind. As the minutes ticked by, May's heart grew heavier.

Drew suddenly released her hand and held something out to her. He was no longer leaning on the railing. "Here."

She looked down to see that he was offering her a rose. Her heart swelled as she took it gently from his outstretched hand. The flower petals were deep red. They were perfect. How he managed to keep them in such beautiful condition would always remain a mystery to her.

"Hey," he said softly, tilting up her chin to see her face.

He must have noticed her sentimental gaze. He took the thornless rose from her fingers and gently placed it behind her ear.

May looked up into his face and could feel herself growing vulnerable. His hand resting near her cheek slid down her arm in order to intertwine his fingers with hers.

"You better send me twice as many letters," he said softly.

"Or what?" she whispered.

"Or I'll change my mind about sending you roses."

He never sent roses with his letters. He always saved them for when they met in person. Drew recognized that he would have to do much more to remind her of home when she was in a different region. He was so supportive of her decision to leave that it brought tears to her eyes.

"Send me pictures, too," Drew added.

"Why," May said almost inaudibly.

Drew's face was directly in front of hers, their noses touching. His free hand cradled her face, his thumb stroking her cheek.

"I don't think I can go that long without seeing your face," Drew admitted. He leaned in closer and May lifted her head in anticipation. "Five months was kind of my limit."

 _Ring._

His face lingered near hers and May's heart plummeted. _Her alarm._

 _Ring_.

Drew chuckled lightly. "Are you going to get that?" he murmured.

Embarrassed, she looked down into her purse, her head resting against his shoulder.

She shut off her alarm and sighed. "It's 3:00."

"Okay." He kissed her forehead. "Let's go get your things."

The two made their way up Oceanview Avenue. They'd just made the right turn towards the Poke Center when May stopped suddenly, mid-conversation.

"What?" Drew asked, bemused. He stopped walking as well.

"Before we go in there," May said slowly. "I have to tell you something."

He raised an eyebrow and listened.

"Nurse Joy is kind of… She kind of…"

"What? Is she okay?"

"Oh yeah, she's fine. She just… She might act a little weird."

May continued walking, leaving Drew standing in confusion.

"What?" he asked. "What does that mean?"

May refused to say any more on the subject. "She just… It'll be weird."

She heard Drew sigh from behind her. "You're killing me, Maple."

The doors to the Poke Center opened automatically and Nurse Joy began her standard greeting.

"Welcome to the—" she stopped short, grinning hugely. "Oh, May! It's you. And this must be…"

"Drew," He stated, smirking.

She covered her mouth with her hands. "Yes, yes of course!" She gave a knowing glance to May. Her eyes shifted to Drew, then back to the brunette. "Yes, well. Is there anything I can help you with?"

May started making her way to her room, Drew following closely behind. "Nope! But I'll be back to check out in a couple of minutes."

"Okay!" Nurse Joy said.

Once in the hallway, Drew mumbled, "Are we going to talk about that?"

"Nope," May said, inserting her key into the door to her room.

It was exactly as empty as she'd left it, her bags piled neatly on the bed.

She made her way to the nightstand and began debating which bags she should carry.

"Here," Drew said. He moved to stand next to her and grabbed her backpack. "You can take the suitcase. It has wheels."

She lifted the handle to the suitcase absentmindedly.

He squeezed her hand. "Okay, let's go."

Upon their return to the front desk, Nurse Joy noticed the rose placed in May's hair.

"You look beautiful, May."

She smiled. "Thank you, Nurse Joy."

The pink-haired woman swiped May's room key to demagnetize it. "That rose was exactly what you needed to complete your look."

May looked up at Drew to see he was already looking at her, his soft gaze causing her to melt.

"Oh my goodness," Nurse Joy whispered so quietly that May almost missed it.

Still, her words were just what May needed to step back into reality.

"Thank you for everything, Nurse Joy," the brunette said.

"Come back anytime," she said, watching the two leave the center. "I hope you enjoyed your stay!"

Drew shifted May's backpack on his back. "So, is she a fan of yours?"

May dragged her suitcase behind her and thought of way to tiptoe around the question. "More like she's a fan of _ours_."

Drew paused. "So, she's my fan, too?"

"Um…" May trailed. "Sure."

"What is that supposed to mean? Is she a fan or not?"

May shrugged. "She could be."

Drew was clearly frustrated. "May."

She giggled in response, earning a chuckle from him as well. They continued along their path to the sea, stopping short of the docks to May's ship.

They were entirely quiet as they stared at the vessel in front of them.

"This is it," Drew said.

She checked her phone. 3:20pm. "Yeah."

Another slight pause.

"Do you want me to carry the backpack on board for you?"

She turned around to face him. His eyes were laced with worry, his brow wrinkled. He didn't look like his usual over-confident self.

"No, I can take it," she said, averting her eyes. She reached for her backpack and he handed it to her.

The air was filled with the sounds of bustling people and ships announcing departure.

She looked down at her shoes as she thought of a way to say goodbye. She couldn't think of anything. She needed more than three hours with him. It wasn't enough time.

"I'll miss you, Maple," he said quietly.

May looked up at him, her heart aching, her eyes overflowing with tears. He wiped them away with his thumb as she stumbled through her words. "I'll miss you too, Hayden."

He pulled her close to him and she hugged him back fiercely.

"Remember," he said quickly. He was trying to excite her for the voyage. "Twice as many letters. Call me whenever. And stay clear of Floaroma. It's dangerous there. Nothing but bad news."

She giggled as he released her from the hug and wiped a tear from her eye. "Floaroma is off-limits."

He smirked. "Exactly."

She took a deep breath and looked up into his face.

"Are you ready?" he asked her softly.

She nodded slowly.

He gave her a slow smile and cocked his head in the direction of the ship. "Go get 'em."

"Okay." She took a step back in the direction of the ship. "I'll write you as soon as I get there." Then she remembered that she didn't know where he was headed. "Are you still going to be here?"

"Yeah, I'll be here for a couple of days."

"Okay," she said instead of goodbye.

He gave her a two-fingered salute.

May took another deep breath and turned around. She paused directly before the ramp to board the ship. Memories of every lonely night flashed before her. She remembered how worried she felt when he didn't reply to her letters fast enough. She knew how quickly memories fade and how often they needed to be replaced. That wouldn't happen if she was in Sinnoh.

"May?" Drew's voice called out to her.

His voice. The way his fingers felt against her cheek. She couldn't leave that behind. She couldn't bear it.

She thought of the time he bought her cookie dough ice cream. How broken he'd looked when she told him she was leaving. Tears streamed down her face at the realization.

He couldn't bear it either.

She dropped her suitcase and let her backpack fall from her shoulder.

"May?" Drew's voice was closer and much more worried.

She turned around to face him and he stopped in his tracks.

"I can't," she said, her voice cracking. "I can't do it."

He was wiping her tears in an instant. "You can. I know you can."

"No," she said, looking into his green eyes. "I can't. I can't leave you anymore. I can't do it."

The look of an internal struggled returned to his face.

"You don't have to," he said. He lifted up her chin. "You don't have to."

His lips crashed against hers like the waves beneath the docks. Her heart swelled as she lifted a hand to entangle it in his hair. She ignored the sound of her ship announcing its departure and reveled in the feeling of his hands against her skin.

She realized she couldn't belong anywhere else.

Here, she was lightning. She was fire. Thunder.

* * *

 **I know this is kind of long. Kind of sad. But idk I liked it.**

 **I was planning on uploading this on Friday or something but I just finished it and COULD NOT wait. So here's to the early update.**

 **Please please please review. It would mean the world to me. Let me know how this was, what you loved, and what could be better. Anything would be a big help!**

 **Thanks for reading!**


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